Sunday, December 28, 2008
I've Got Those After Christmas Blues
I just don't want it to end. Christmas vacation is half over and I'm not tired of the kids yet. Not that they haven't tried. I love the SNOW and all the play time.
Monday, December 15, 2008
Dreaded Smith Christmas Letter 2008
This is amazing. Now I completely understand how old ones can sit in a rocking chair all day and not get bored. Time is moving quickly. Thinking about time reminds me of Stephen Hawking’s book, A Brief History of Time I read this year—mind you I read the newly ILLUSTRATED version. I dig picture books. If you like picture books, too, check out The Arrival by Tan at the nearest library. Don’t pass up the knitting book section and all those yummy books about yarn or the Twilight series by Meyers…. “Enough of you,” you say. OK. Here is a Brief History of Smith Time:
Bob—sold the airplane kit he was building. He had completed the wings and tail. He had become a champion riveter holstered with bucking bar and everything. His tutoring responsibilities had become overwhelming in addition to his full time work as a computer engineer/manager. Ayn and Brad pay homage to Bob nightly because of his rescuing them from drowning in physic, calculus, geometry and Algebra II homework. I don’t know how a normal family can achieve respectable grades without a live-in physics/math tutor and home computer systems engineer. You don’t need to feel sorry for Bob. His dreams have come true. The cash from the airplane sale was burning a hole in his hand and he promptly purchased a bullet bike, a 500 cc Kawasaki Ninja. Bob’s Mini Cooper is still cute as a bucket of puppies. Ayn runs off with it whenever possible.
Ayn—like I said, she keeps running off with the Mini. Most of the time she is not here. She’s always doing something, something other than her family chores. She’s at violin lessons, or piano, or babysitting Jennifer (a special needs gal), or volunteering at Timp hospital in the OB area. She’s at this choir concert or that orchestra concert or visiting this friend or texting, texting, texting. She never plays with me, humph. I guess I should mention she does mountain bike with Bob and I.
Brad—is growing facial hair, just barely. Mostly sideburns, but that’s a start. And, he’s driving with ME in the passenger seat. Most jazz band mornings we’re shooting the rapids of walkers, joggers and cyclists, tenor sax bumping around in the back seat. All of this in the December dark. I’m just thankful lacrosse hasn’t started. Brad is a well-padded goalie for the PG JV LaX team. Now, to get him to do the conditioning.
Mark—‘s dreams have come true. He purchased a like-new Yamaha TTR 125 dirt bike in October. He rides every day in the “dirt hill” area up the road from us. Mind you, it’s not on forest service land. Mark doesn’t have to pay homage to Bob, nightly, like the rest because he usually doesn’t need help with his classes. Mark has been mountain biking with Bob and I.
Shannon—‘s dreams have come true, too. She got her ears pierced on her October birthday. She is in the collecting more, and more, and more earrings phase. She wants to go see the Twilight movie with me. I think we’ll go to the dollar theater eventually. She is also in the “love horses” phase, still. She’s becoming fashion minded and cares about shoes. Horse books are her thing. Don’t say anything, but I’m giving her the Unicorns of Balinor Books 1-3 for Christmas.
Whitney—‘s dreams haven’t come true, however. She doesn’t have any, she says. It’s hard finding jeans to fit this tiny-butted, long-legged girl. She didn’t inherit her body type from me. She writes magnificent love notes, hugs generously and draws beautifully. She avoids music practice at all costs both on the violin and piano. She collects, organizes and sets up.
Daniel—‘s dream would come true if he could go to Hawaii and see an erupting volcano. He is simultaneously in the volcano and dinosaur phase. He recently asked me which day we get to leave for Hawaii. Then we had a talk about $$ and $$ and $$. Daniel did love the Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum. For his November 25th birthday we had a dinosaur fest.
Dolores—the cat is fine.
Major Tom—the cat is fine.
Baby, Chocolate and Tippy—the rats are fine.
Steve—the parakeet is fine.
Zena, jungle princess—the Americana hen is fine.
Hope you all are doin’ fine, too.
You made it to The End.
Bob—sold the airplane kit he was building. He had completed the wings and tail. He had become a champion riveter holstered with bucking bar and everything. His tutoring responsibilities had become overwhelming in addition to his full time work as a computer engineer/manager. Ayn and Brad pay homage to Bob nightly because of his rescuing them from drowning in physic, calculus, geometry and Algebra II homework. I don’t know how a normal family can achieve respectable grades without a live-in physics/math tutor and home computer systems engineer. You don’t need to feel sorry for Bob. His dreams have come true. The cash from the airplane sale was burning a hole in his hand and he promptly purchased a bullet bike, a 500 cc Kawasaki Ninja. Bob’s Mini Cooper is still cute as a bucket of puppies. Ayn runs off with it whenever possible.
Ayn—like I said, she keeps running off with the Mini. Most of the time she is not here. She’s always doing something, something other than her family chores. She’s at violin lessons, or piano, or babysitting Jennifer (a special needs gal), or volunteering at Timp hospital in the OB area. She’s at this choir concert or that orchestra concert or visiting this friend or texting, texting, texting. She never plays with me, humph. I guess I should mention she does mountain bike with Bob and I.
Brad—is growing facial hair, just barely. Mostly sideburns, but that’s a start. And, he’s driving with ME in the passenger seat. Most jazz band mornings we’re shooting the rapids of walkers, joggers and cyclists, tenor sax bumping around in the back seat. All of this in the December dark. I’m just thankful lacrosse hasn’t started. Brad is a well-padded goalie for the PG JV LaX team. Now, to get him to do the conditioning.
Mark—‘s dreams have come true. He purchased a like-new Yamaha TTR 125 dirt bike in October. He rides every day in the “dirt hill” area up the road from us. Mind you, it’s not on forest service land. Mark doesn’t have to pay homage to Bob, nightly, like the rest because he usually doesn’t need help with his classes. Mark has been mountain biking with Bob and I.
Shannon—‘s dreams have come true, too. She got her ears pierced on her October birthday. She is in the collecting more, and more, and more earrings phase. She wants to go see the Twilight movie with me. I think we’ll go to the dollar theater eventually. She is also in the “love horses” phase, still. She’s becoming fashion minded and cares about shoes. Horse books are her thing. Don’t say anything, but I’m giving her the Unicorns of Balinor Books 1-3 for Christmas.
Whitney—‘s dreams haven’t come true, however. She doesn’t have any, she says. It’s hard finding jeans to fit this tiny-butted, long-legged girl. She didn’t inherit her body type from me. She writes magnificent love notes, hugs generously and draws beautifully. She avoids music practice at all costs both on the violin and piano. She collects, organizes and sets up.
Daniel—‘s dream would come true if he could go to Hawaii and see an erupting volcano. He is simultaneously in the volcano and dinosaur phase. He recently asked me which day we get to leave for Hawaii. Then we had a talk about $$ and $$ and $$. Daniel did love the Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum. For his November 25th birthday we had a dinosaur fest.
Dolores—the cat is fine.
Major Tom—the cat is fine.
Baby, Chocolate and Tippy—the rats are fine.
Steve—the parakeet is fine.
Zena, jungle princess—the Americana hen is fine.
Hope you all are doin’ fine, too.
You made it to The End.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Thanksgiving 2008
I love brined turkeys and this year's turned out great--Daniel thought so. Paul and Janelle hosted the whole family and provided homemade rolls and stuffing, as well as seats for everyone. Yummy. Check out the photos.
One Down, Two to Go
Bradley completed his Eagle project a year ago in October 2007. He received his actual award and certificate last June 2008 after he finally completed the paperwork. Seems the paperwork may have been more difficult than the actual project. He did a good job. And now the Eagle Court of Honor to award the rank in style.
Monday, November 17, 2008
Happy Feelings?--Smith Christmas Card Photo Shoot
Whoa, there were not very many smiling faces when we were getting ready for this photo shoot at Bridal Veil Falls. Not that the kids had to do very much. Simply the request to wear something with red seemed to overwhelmed half of them emotionally. The other half stood looking at his/her sibling thinking "What the heck is your problem?" Here's a slide show of the results.
It's Cute When It's Someone Else's Hamster
Whitney's hamster died from old age about 6 months ago. Just recently she shyly suggested we could get another. I not so shyly reminded her she could hold one of the three rats, or the parakeet, or the chicken, or the tomcat, or the Dolores cat.
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Excellent Night of Excellence
We had our Young Women's Night of Excellence last night. Fun, fun, fun. No, really. The State Fair theme was a riot. I especially loved the huge-tricycle races.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Mark's Purchase
Mark traded in his Christmas allotment and his saving for a Yamaha 125 dirt bike in like new condition. Pretty sweet.
Flying High
Bob finally got a chance to fly Saturday. Shan and Daniel went with him. Rollercoaster was AWESOME!
Got Those Photos While Biking
Yes! I brought Aynie's little camera in my camelback. Here's the little slideshow:
Whooah! Got that Sacrament Talk Done.
I had some bad timing with the sinuses this weekend. But, I've got some amoxicillian, now, and can feel it helping me. I was able to croak through my Sacrament talk assignment yesterday. I didn't want to postpone it and have to worry about delivering a talk next Sunday. Here's the talk:
Sacrament Talk November 9, 2008
HOPE
Bro. Olson threatened me with a speaking assignment about 14 months ago. I was pretty sure he’d forgotten till I started seeing his name on caller ID. I girded up my loins and returned his call. Turns out he had prepared a homerun for me. This topic is terrific. HOPE. How hard could a talk on Hope be? Delivery—now that is the only problem. That was the problem with bringing six of my children into the world. DELIVERY. Now, if there were an epidural designed for public speakers. How would that work? The theme is “Hope” and the talk is from General Conference. Pres. Uchtdorf spoke about “The Infinite Power of Hope.”
He has had some amazing experiences growing up. Remember the story about his mother. She and her children were fleeing Czechoslovakia in the winter wartime of 1944. He was only 3 years old. In route to Germany the train stopped and she disembarked to find food for her children. When she came back the train and children were gone.
I can imagine how she felt. I’ve lost a child or two in the store. I know that frantic feeling. Just multiply that 50 times. Pres. Uchtdorf says,
“She moved. She put her faith and hope into action. (She was probably imagining she may never see her children again if the train had already headed to Germany.) And so she ran from track to track and from train to train until she finally found the train. It had been moved to a remote area of the station. There, at last, she found her children again.” Ensign Nov. 2008, 21.
Pres. Uchtdorf says he now would have liked to ask her how she overcame her fear. How her faith and hope helped her overcome her despair and terror. He goes on to say that hope, faith and charity are like a three-legged stool. We need all three to stabilize our lives, especially during rough and uneven times.
Without hope there is despair. The scriptures were written to provide hope. Hope is a gift of the Spirit. “It is a hope that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of His Resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal and this because of our faith in the Savior.” Moroni 7:41. That’s it in a nutshell. We need hope to receive the blessings tied to this principle. It’s all interconnected. Testimony, service, charity or love, HOPE.
We need to have hope in our Father’s plan of happiness. Hope in the atonement. We need to trust in Him. Know that He is God and be still. Psalms 46:10; D&C 101:16.
Without Hope there is despair. Remember, “Opposition in all things.” Pres. Uchtdorf says, “The adversary uses despair to bind hearts and minds in suffocating darkness. Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart… (That’s gotta be what addiction is like.)
Hope is like the beam of sunlight….It pierces the darkness….It’s a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father who has prepared a way…” Ensign, 22 Hope is like a bright, winter morning on a powerdy ski slope with the Beatles song, “Here Comes the Sun” playing through your earphones. Mind you, I said, “ski slope,” not snowboard slope because if I were snowboarding I wouldn’t be able to see the sun. Face down. Snow in nostrils.
Hope is not knowledge. Instead it is trusting the Lord to fulfill His promises if we follow His commandments. Use repentance. Start over. Again and again if we need too. Continually hoping, working, trying, doing.
Hope is action and trusting. Marlin, the clown fish, in Finding Nemo reminds me of Pres. Uchtdorf’s mother and her “get-up-and-go attitude”. They both charged ahead with gusto. Remember when Marlin and Dori are having the party with Bruce the shark and his cohorts. Imagine the fear. Remember the deep, dark abyss with the anglerfish. Remember, “Go over the trench, not through.” Then the jellies. How about the OAC and Marlin’s “serious thrill issues.” Marlin is a father who is not going to let his child go without doing all that he can do. He is NOT paralyzed. He’s energized. The same goes for us.
The three legged stool (faith, hope & charity) gives you courage when it’s hard. And it will be hard. That is the point of this trial by life. If our test were too easy, we would not be able to demonstrate our potential. Maximize our time here on earth. Another father and a prophet, Alma the Elder didn’t give up. He and those closest to his rascally son, Alma the Younger, prayed that that wayward boy would “come to a knowledge of the truth”.
In conclusion here are some great scriptures about hope which Pres. Uchtdorf mentioned.
Mosiah 27:
14 And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath aheard the prayers of his people, and also the bprayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has cprayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the dknowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to econvince thee of the power and authority of God, that the fprayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith.
Boy, did he come to a knowledge of the truth. Pres. Uchtdorf says, “we learn to cultivate hope the same way we learn to walk, one step at a time. As we study the scriptures, speak with our Heavenly Father daily, commit to keep the commandments of God, like the Word of Wisdom, and to pay a full titihing, we attain hope. We grow in our ability to ‘abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost,’ as we more perfectly live the gospel.”
The YMYW went to the Conference Center Wednesday evening--Us and 21,000 other hormonally perky individuals. Elder Holland and cast were filming a DVD for the New Year celebration quickly approaching. It is called “A Brand New Year.”
Of course the theme is hope. Hope for a brand new year. And the message of how to have hope was the same as Pres. Uchtdorf’s. Sister Dalton and Brother Dalquist, the Gen. Y.W.’s Pres. & Y.M.’s Pres, asked all the youth to commit to pray daily, read 5 min. of the Book of Mormon daily and smile (be happy) daily.
Let me add to these three items in order to insure your success.
Take naps.
“The Lord [is] the hope of his people, and the strenth of the children of Israel.” Joel 3:16.
Nephi says, “Press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.” 2 Nephi 31.20
The Lord has said, “Fear not, little flock,” God will wait with “Open arms to receive” those who give away their sins and continue in faith, hope, and charity.” D&C 6:34
I am so thankful for the gospel. For the Atonement provided by Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon is terrific. A wonderful source of personal revelation, even when you're reading about Ammon cutting off the multitude of arms of the sheep thieves, the Spirit can bear witness of important personal needs you, yourself, have. My family is so important to me. I will work as hard as I can for them. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Sacrament Talk November 9, 2008
HOPE
Bro. Olson threatened me with a speaking assignment about 14 months ago. I was pretty sure he’d forgotten till I started seeing his name on caller ID. I girded up my loins and returned his call. Turns out he had prepared a homerun for me. This topic is terrific. HOPE. How hard could a talk on Hope be? Delivery—now that is the only problem. That was the problem with bringing six of my children into the world. DELIVERY. Now, if there were an epidural designed for public speakers. How would that work? The theme is “Hope” and the talk is from General Conference. Pres. Uchtdorf spoke about “The Infinite Power of Hope.”
He has had some amazing experiences growing up. Remember the story about his mother. She and her children were fleeing Czechoslovakia in the winter wartime of 1944. He was only 3 years old. In route to Germany the train stopped and she disembarked to find food for her children. When she came back the train and children were gone.
I can imagine how she felt. I’ve lost a child or two in the store. I know that frantic feeling. Just multiply that 50 times. Pres. Uchtdorf says,
“She moved. She put her faith and hope into action. (She was probably imagining she may never see her children again if the train had already headed to Germany.) And so she ran from track to track and from train to train until she finally found the train. It had been moved to a remote area of the station. There, at last, she found her children again.” Ensign Nov. 2008, 21.
Pres. Uchtdorf says he now would have liked to ask her how she overcame her fear. How her faith and hope helped her overcome her despair and terror. He goes on to say that hope, faith and charity are like a three-legged stool. We need all three to stabilize our lives, especially during rough and uneven times.
Without hope there is despair. The scriptures were written to provide hope. Hope is a gift of the Spirit. “It is a hope that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ and the power of His Resurrection, we shall be raised unto life eternal and this because of our faith in the Savior.” Moroni 7:41. That’s it in a nutshell. We need hope to receive the blessings tied to this principle. It’s all interconnected. Testimony, service, charity or love, HOPE.
We need to have hope in our Father’s plan of happiness. Hope in the atonement. We need to trust in Him. Know that He is God and be still. Psalms 46:10; D&C 101:16.
Without Hope there is despair. Remember, “Opposition in all things.” Pres. Uchtdorf says, “The adversary uses despair to bind hearts and minds in suffocating darkness. Despair drains from us all that is vibrant and joyful and leaves behind the empty remnants of what life was meant to be. Despair kills ambition, advances sickness, pollutes the soul, and deadens the heart… (That’s gotta be what addiction is like.)
Hope is like the beam of sunlight….It pierces the darkness….It’s a brilliant dawn. It encourages and inspires us to place our trust in the loving care of an eternal Heavenly Father who has prepared a way…” Ensign, 22 Hope is like a bright, winter morning on a powerdy ski slope with the Beatles song, “Here Comes the Sun” playing through your earphones. Mind you, I said, “ski slope,” not snowboard slope because if I were snowboarding I wouldn’t be able to see the sun. Face down. Snow in nostrils.
Hope is not knowledge. Instead it is trusting the Lord to fulfill His promises if we follow His commandments. Use repentance. Start over. Again and again if we need too. Continually hoping, working, trying, doing.
Hope is action and trusting. Marlin, the clown fish, in Finding Nemo reminds me of Pres. Uchtdorf’s mother and her “get-up-and-go attitude”. They both charged ahead with gusto. Remember when Marlin and Dori are having the party with Bruce the shark and his cohorts. Imagine the fear. Remember the deep, dark abyss with the anglerfish. Remember, “Go over the trench, not through.” Then the jellies. How about the OAC and Marlin’s “serious thrill issues.” Marlin is a father who is not going to let his child go without doing all that he can do. He is NOT paralyzed. He’s energized. The same goes for us.
The three legged stool (faith, hope & charity) gives you courage when it’s hard. And it will be hard. That is the point of this trial by life. If our test were too easy, we would not be able to demonstrate our potential. Maximize our time here on earth. Another father and a prophet, Alma the Elder didn’t give up. He and those closest to his rascally son, Alma the Younger, prayed that that wayward boy would “come to a knowledge of the truth”.
In conclusion here are some great scriptures about hope which Pres. Uchtdorf mentioned.
Mosiah 27:
14 And again, the angel said: Behold, the Lord hath aheard the prayers of his people, and also the bprayers of his servant, Alma, who is thy father; for he has cprayed with much faith concerning thee that thou mightest be brought to the dknowledge of the truth; therefore, for this purpose have I come to econvince thee of the power and authority of God, that the fprayers of his servants might be answered according to their faith.
Boy, did he come to a knowledge of the truth. Pres. Uchtdorf says, “we learn to cultivate hope the same way we learn to walk, one step at a time. As we study the scriptures, speak with our Heavenly Father daily, commit to keep the commandments of God, like the Word of Wisdom, and to pay a full titihing, we attain hope. We grow in our ability to ‘abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost,’ as we more perfectly live the gospel.”
The YMYW went to the Conference Center Wednesday evening--Us and 21,000 other hormonally perky individuals. Elder Holland and cast were filming a DVD for the New Year celebration quickly approaching. It is called “A Brand New Year.”
Of course the theme is hope. Hope for a brand new year. And the message of how to have hope was the same as Pres. Uchtdorf’s. Sister Dalton and Brother Dalquist, the Gen. Y.W.’s Pres. & Y.M.’s Pres, asked all the youth to commit to pray daily, read 5 min. of the Book of Mormon daily and smile (be happy) daily.
Let me add to these three items in order to insure your success.
Take naps.
“The Lord [is] the hope of his people, and the strenth of the children of Israel.” Joel 3:16.
Nephi says, “Press forward with a steadfastness in Christ, having a perfect brightness of hope and a love of God and of all men. Wherefore, if ye shall press forward and endure to the end, behold, thus saith the Father: Ye shall have eternal life.” 2 Nephi 31.20
The Lord has said, “Fear not, little flock,” God will wait with “Open arms to receive” those who give away their sins and continue in faith, hope, and charity.” D&C 6:34
I am so thankful for the gospel. For the Atonement provided by Jesus Christ. The Book of Mormon is terrific. A wonderful source of personal revelation, even when you're reading about Ammon cutting off the multitude of arms of the sheep thieves, the Spirit can bear witness of important personal needs you, yourself, have. My family is so important to me. I will work as hard as I can for them. In the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.
Monday, November 3, 2008
Now to YOU TUBE it.
I've some slide shows rotating on the blog. Yeah! Can I attach a personal YouTube video? That is the question. It means learning how to post to YouTube first. Aynie has a violin recital tonight. I want to post that performance for the Old Ones. We shall see.
This autumn day is beautiful after the terrific rain yesterday; however, Whit is pretty sick with flu-like syptoms. Thursday I'm hauling the kittens down the the Utah County Health Clinic for flu shots. Better not delay.
This autumn day is beautiful after the terrific rain yesterday; however, Whit is pretty sick with flu-like syptoms. Thursday I'm hauling the kittens down the the Utah County Health Clinic for flu shots. Better not delay.
Thursday, October 23, 2008
Smiths Invade Moab
The swimming pool water was just the right temperature. We had two tv's and the microwave was big enough to heat both our frozen lasagnas. Arches National Park and all the other UEA vacationers greeted us on a beautiful October Friday.
Fossil Hil
On the way to Arches located just off Hwy 6 near a rest stop (which is now gone) is a hill covered with fossil remnants of ancient sea creatures. We left for Goblin Valley, Arches and Deadhorse Point one week ago. UEA and Teacher Comp day rocks--so does Moab. The weather was excellent and the rechargeable batteries mostly complied with our requirements. No one threw-up. The hotel had a pool and free hot breakfast. Can't get better than that.
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